Air pollution results reported to Rotorua residents

Air pollution in Rotorua city is so concerning that test results now have to be reported to local residents.

Environment Bay of Plenty will publicise the latest monitoring information in a monthly advertisement in the Daily Post and on the regional council website.

Last year, Rotorua¡¦s urban area was declared a Local Air Management Area, the only one in the Bay of Plenty. It was given this status after failing to meet national air quality standards for particulate matter, the very small particles suspended in air. Environment Bay of Plenty is charged with ensuring an improvement within eight years.

The regional council has monitoring equipment set up in various urban locations in the city. Under Government rules, a site can only exceed the limit once in a year. If it goes over that, the council must report the results to the public every month.
Group manager of regulation and resource management, Paul Dell, says a monitoring site in Edmund Road failed to meet the standard twice in May. It logged a particulate matter (PM10) concentration of 64ƒÝg/m3 in mid-May and of 52ƒÝg/m3 a week later. The National Environment Standard for PM10 is 50 ƒÝg/m3.

A summary of the information for May is being advertised in the classified section of the Daily Post on Thursday 8 June. It is also posted on Environment Bay of Plenty¡¦s website at www.envbop.govt.nz.

Environment Bay of Plenty, with the help of the public and various organisations, needs to improve air quality for Rotorua city, Mr Dell says. ¡§We have launched a number of scientific investigations to get a better understanding of the source of the problem. We can then work out how best to deal with it.¡¨

Particulate matter is generally created by poor combustion in vehicles and by wood-burning fires. High levels can have serious health effects, including respiratory problems.

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